Soan River (; ), also Sawan, or Sohan, is a
river
A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...
in
Punjab
Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
,
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
. It originates from the
Murree Hills and joins the
Indus River
The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayas, Himalayan river of South Asia, South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in the Western Tibet region of China, flows northw ...
near
Makhad.
Oldest evidence of human activity in Pakistan has been found in the Soan River valley. The
Soan Valley area is believed to have originated during the
Stone Age
The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...
.
Location and geography
The Soan River drains much of the water of the
Pothohar Plateau
The Pothohar Plateau (, : ''Pо̄ṭhoā̀r Paṭhār''; , ''Satāh Murtafā Pо̄ṭhohār''), also spelled Pothwar, is a plateau in the Sindh Sagar Doab, Sind Sagar Doab of northern Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab, Pakistan, located between the Indus ...
. It starts in the foothills of
Patriata in
Murree and provides water to the
Simly Dam, which is a water reservoir for
Islamabad
Islamabad (; , ; ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's tenth-most populous city with a population of over 1.1 million and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital Territory. Bu ...
. Near
Pharwala Fort,
Ling Stream, following a relatively long course through Lehtrar and
Kahuta, joins the Soan near
Sihala on the southern side of village
Gagri.
The Soan river is more than long. The
Islamabad Expressway crosses this stream near
Sihala at the
Kak Pul bridge. The Ling Stream joins the Soan river just before the Kak Pul. Two other streams, the
Korang River and the Lai stream, join the Soan just before and after the Soan Bridge, respectively. After following a path along a big curve, the stream reaches the proposed
Kalabagh dam site close to Pir Piai where it falls into the
Indus River
The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayas, Himalayan river of South Asia, South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in the Western Tibet region of China, flows northw ...
.
The marine life of the river is currently endangered due to the discharge of chemicals of the Sihala Industrial State and effluent water of
Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, third-largest city in the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is a commercial and industrial hub, being the list of cities in P ...
city into it.
Soanians
The oldest evidence of human activity in Pakistan has been found in the Soan River valley. It was here that some of the earliest signs of pre-modern humans, known as
Soanians, have been discovered during the excavations of prehistoric mounds.
Some relics found in the Soan Valley area during the excavation process are believed to have originated over 500,000 years ago, during the Stone Age.
See also
*
Soon Valley
*
Indus River
The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayas, Himalayan river of South Asia, South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in the Western Tibet region of China, flows northw ...
*
Soan Culture
References
External links
Photo of fossils found in Soan valley
{{Coord, 33, 01, 19, N, 71, 43, 19, E, display=title, region:PK_type:river
Rivers of Punjab, Pakistan
Rigvedic rivers
Tributaries of the Indus River
Rivers of Pakistan